Entitlement reforms should be based on extending the enormously successful, bipartisan, 1996 AFDC block grant reforms to all federal, means tested, welfare programs, including Medicaid and food stamps.

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He said the reasons were firstly practical, because for example if a person's entitlement to vote was based on Scotland being their birthplace a whole new electoral register would be needed.

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And the obvious question to ask after that is whether the capital and people working in the future will produce enough goods and services to provide those who have retired with the standard of living that they expect or at least hope to have, based on the dollar value of their retirement savings and entitlement benefits.

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Your pension entitlement is calculated as a proportion of your final earnings based on the number of years you have been in the scheme.

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